


mirror from years ago

by IllusionaryPandimonium



Category: Greater Boston (Podcast)
Genre: Gen, bruh this podcast should be more popular, guess what we're riding the angst train, the fact that there are so few fics in this fandom is a crying shame, this is a story about leon, you know how it goes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-24
Updated: 2020-02-24
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:08:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22873777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IllusionaryPandimonium/pseuds/IllusionaryPandimonium
Summary: snapshots through time, seen through the eyes of Leon Stamatis
Relationships: Leon Stamatis & Michael Tate
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	mirror from years ago

**Author's Note:**

> title snatched from Hozier because I have no shame

Snapshots through time - from the start to the end

.

Leon’s still not sure how they both didn’t see it coming sooner.

Dmitri was always on the move, on the hunt for something new, some elusive strange thing to calm the beating of his heart. Boston ceased to be enough by the end of middle school, the state of Massachusetts too small by senior year. Their parents had tolerated the constant absences and truancies because despite everything, Dmitri showed no signs of drug use and his grades stayed higher than Nica’s.

All the signs were there. After his highschool graduation Dmitri had wound even tighter, more tense, hackles raised and eyes distant every time Leon saw him at home. By the end of the summer, he’d been ready to bolt, save for the one thing tying him down.

That summer Dmitri had been inseparable from Nica, and Leon barely saw the two save for weekends and the occasional stretch of days where the two came back to restock on home cooked meals and the company of other people’s conversation. Leon saw the two in quicksilver flashes, darting in and out of the house, faster than hummingbirds and twice as joyful.

On the last day of the summer, the humidity had stretched to its breaking point and finally poured over in a torrent that drenched anyone who dared go outside. Nica and Dmitri had dragged themselves home, soaked to the bone, and Leon saw them through his window, arguing out on the sidewalk, screaming and shaking and shouting over the rumble of thunder. Nica had come inside, and Dmitri had wandered out into the city again.

That night, Leon waited and watched, a solitary golden window on a dark street.

Dmitri came back in the early hours of the dawn, just before the light began to break over the horizon, and slunk back into his bedroom.

Leon flicked the light off and went to sleep.

The next morning, Dmitri was gone, leaving behind nothing but puzzles and memories.

.

**Saturday, August 23:** _Solve the puzzle box._

_._

  
  


Leon should not be here. Leon hates this place with a simmering anger that burns low in his gut. Nica had dragged him here against his will and she had looked upset enough over Dmitri’s departure that he took one look at her expression and caved instantly.

Now that he’s here though, Leon is very much regretting that decision. Everyone around him is constantly moving, writhing against each other like rabid animals and the scent of booze hangs heavy in the air. A shaggy haired student bumps into Leon, and he stumbles away, pushed off balance by the bright flashing lights and the dim shadows of people and everything around him is too much, dizzying and light headed until his back hits an edge.

Leon turns and realizes he’s arrived at the makeshift bar, and distantly admires the ingenuity of desperate college students to obtain questionable amounts of alcohol until he’s slammed into the bar by the same shaggy haired drunk from before.

Up close the drunk stranger is even more unkempt and disheveled than he looked at a glance, but his eyes shimmer with mirth. Leon hears himself make a sound halfway between a wheeze and a mumbled greeting and he can feel his heart stutter-stop in his chest as his breath catches.

“Wh-what?”, he manages to croak out.

“You looked lonely all gloomy and sad in the corner! Cheer up dude, drinks are on me!”

This was a mistake. A beer is immediately shoved into his hand and Leon can’t for the life of him put together any coherent thoughts whatsoever.

The stranger shoots him a quick grin and backs away, leaning on the bar next to Leon. For lack of a better thing to do with his hands and not knowing the proper thing to say in this specific situation, Leon takes a swig of the beer.

It's absolutely disgusting, lukewarm and bitter, burning its way down his throat. Leon takes another swig.

The stranger introduces himself as Michael, and starts chattering away next to Leon, barely stopping for breath. Leon drinks some more, and periodically responds with a quiet “mhm” and “uh-huh” at the appropriate times. Shots eventually get pulled out of somewhere, and Michael cajoles Leon into drinking one. One turns into another and another, but Michael never ceases to be infallibly cheerful the whole time, though his words do start slurring a bit.

Leon looks around and feels the world start to tilt a bit, and he lists to the right, catching himself on something warm and solid. Everything feels spinny and not at all coordinated and he hears a distant laugh him, and oh - Michael, Michael’s still here.

Michael sighs. “Better get you to your room buddy,” he says. “Where is your dorm?”

Leon mumbles out something, and the world goes a bit blurry after that but for the sensation of being dragged into an elevator and unceremoniously deposited into a bed.

.

Leon wakes with a pounding headache and many, many regrets. He decides that morning that alcohol in excess is just not for him, and writes it down in his planner to seal the deal.

.

**Monday, October 14:** _Don’t drink too much alcohol. It is a bad idea to do so in the future as well._

_._

From his first meeting, Michael Tate is causing ripples in Leon’s life.

After finding out that they were across the hall together to finding out they share similar classes, there’s no escape, and Michael just slots seamlessly into a hole that Leon never knew needed filling before.

.

**Wednesday, October 16:** Go see new movie with Michael. Find out summary beforehand in case of sleep.

.

Time moves on. The year turns into a blur of studying and learning people’s names, and through it all, Michael, Michael, Michael.

Nica drops out at the start of November. She wanted to pursue her own path, and Leon helps her find a suitable apartment. He helps her pack her things away, box by box, and when it all ends, he goes and finds Michael, sits next to him and falls asleep leaning on his shoulder.

.


End file.
